The Coffee Shop Alternative
by NerdForestGirl
Summary: In a world where Sheldon Cooper is more comfortable with physical contact and is considerably more charming, can he still woo the likes of Amy Farrah Fowler? This story is a little bit AU and definitely OOC. Shamy.


**A/N: I've decided to start another story. I hope you guys like it. I'm aware that Sheldon is out of character in this story. That was my intention. I wanted to play with the dynamic between Sheldon and Amy if Sheldon was the one who is more comfortable with touching and a bit more charming. Also, this story is rated "M" for future sexual content (I'm trying to step out of my comfort zone a little bit here). I hope you enjoy. Thanks for taking a look.**

* * *

Amy sat alone in the coffee shop. Her coffee had gone cold. She wasn't really sure why she was still waiting because it was pretty obvious that she had been stood up again. _That's the last time I try a dating site_, she thought.

She believed in love. She wanted love. It just seemed that love didn't want her. Amy wondered if it was worth all the effort just to have that happiness that others seemed to find in a relationship. Maybe she would find it one day, but it wouldn't be today.

Closing her book and picking up her mug to return to the barista, Amy was ready to leave. She handed the mug to the woman behind the counter and bumped into a man standing right behind her.

"Oh my gosh, I'm so sorry," Amy said. Her books had flown from her hands, and the man bent down to pick them up for her.

"Thank you. I'm so sorry," Amy said again when he handed them to her. Well, he started to hand them back to her, but his hands wouldn't let go of them.

"Have we met before?" The tall stranger asked. He looked at the books in his hands. They were neurobiology text books and journals.

"Um," Amy started. She would have remembered meeting this man before. He was much taller than her with chestnut brown hair and the most beautiful blue eyes she had ever seen.

"UCLA," the man said suddenly. "I'll admit that I've never much of a fan of biology, but I stumbled upon one of your lectures the last time I was visiting over there. It was last month, and you were talking about your findings in an addiction study. It was brilliant. I'm Dr. Sheldon Cooper. I work in the Theoretical Physics department over at Cal Tech," the man said as he held out his hand to shake Amy's.

She stared at it a little too long before returning the handshake. Amy normally wasn't the biggest fan of physical contact, but this was a whole different animal. This was an unusually handsome man who also knew that she was a scientist and didn't seem to be afraid of that. She did eventually return the handshake. "I'm Dr. Amy Farrah Fowler. It's nice to meet you," Amy said in a voice that was a little higher than her normal one.

"Are you heading out? I would love to buy you a drink and talk to you about your work if you have the time," Dr. Cooper said.

"Um," Amy said again. She never felt this stupid in her life.

He gave her a crooked smile and said, "You're a busy woman. I understand."

"No. I was going to leave because I got stood up, but I don't actually have anything to do, and I actually just said that out loud to a man I just met who must now think I'm the biggest loser in the world," Amy said. She couldn't even meet his eye after that.

He just gave her a breathy chuckle and said, "Let me buy you a cup of coffee and you can tell me about that too."

Amy nodded, but wondered why this man was so interested in her. She was aware that she wasn't pretty or good at socializing or any of the things she assumed men usually looked for. Maybe her lecture had just been that interesting. It was one of her better ones.

The man carried the drinks over to a table in the corner of the coffee shop. Amy sat across from him in an awkward silence as she sipped the too sweet coffee. She wasn't sure what to say, so she didn't say anything until he started asking her about her work.

It was like she was a different woman when she spoke about her work. She was confident and charming and full of energy. It helped that Dr. Cooper asked informed and relevant questions about her work. At some point the topic of conversation changed to his work, and Amy understood that she was talking to genius near to or above her own. He had been well informed about her work, but it was a completely different level as he started talking about his work with String Theory.

They didn't stop talking until an employee at the coffee shop came over to inform them that the store was closing.

"Wow. Time really got away from me. Leonard is probably wondering where I am by now," Dr. Cooper said. Amy got it then. He wasn't interested in her in a romantic way. Clearly, Dr. Cooper was gay and his boyfriend was worried about him. Still, she hadn't had such a satisfying conversation in several years. It was a much better night than her date would have been. She wanted to stay friends with him, but she didn't know exactly how to do that. Amy knew a lot of things, but making friends wasn't one of them.

"Thanks for the conversation, Dr. Cooper. It was the highlight of my day," Amy said as the man walked her to her car.

"Please call me Sheldon," he said. Amy looked around for his car, but she realized that hers was the only one in the parking lot.

"Where is your car, Sheldon?"

"I don't drive," he told her.

"Is your boyfriend going to come get you?" Amy asked.

"My boyfriend?" Sheldon repeated, confused.

"You said that your boyfriend was worried about you. Is he coming to get you, or would you like a ride home?" Amy asked.

Sheldon just stared at her for a moment. He was trying to figure out why she thought he was gay, and then he remembered mentioning Leonard.

"Leonard is my roommate in a strictly platonic sense. I'm not gay, but I appreciate the fact that it didn't seem to faze you at all," Sheldon said with a smile.

Amy was mortified that she had made that assumption. She really didn't care if he was gay, but most men would not have been as relaxed about being called gay by a woman they just spent the last few hours chatting with. Sheldon didn't seem bothered by it, but Amy still wanted to get away from him as fast as she could.

"I wouldn't mind a ride if you are still offering. The buses still run, but they are spaced out this late," Sheldon said, taking away her opportunity to escape him.

Amy knew she could say no. In fact, she knew she probably should, considering he was man whom she had just met a couple of hours before. Still, there was something she liked about the charming scientist.

"Get in," Amy said as she nodded her head toward the passenger seat.

Sheldon walked around to the other side of her car and got in. He told her how to get to his apartment building. It wasn't too far from the coffee shop and it only took them about ten minutes to get there. Amy was almost sad to see him go.

"Amy, it was in complete and utter pleasure to speak to you tonight. I hope this doesn't seem too forward, but I was wondering if maybe you would have dinner with me later this week?"

Amy was shocked and confused. She had been on approximately three dates in her entire life, and they had all been first dates. None of them had been with handsome, charming physicists who knew about neurobiology too. "Yeah. Okay. That sounds nice," Amy said. She didn't even realize that she had agreed until it was already out of her mouth. They exchanged numbers and Sheldon said he would get back to her with details within a day or two.

Amy was too stunned to think about much more than her drive home and worry a little that this was some sort of terrible prank. She was only reassured that it wasn't a prank by the fact that she didn't have anyone in her life who would do such a thing anymore. She didn't even have any friends who could turn on her.

* * *

Sheldon let himself into the apartment. Leonard was on the couch next to Penny and they were watching TV. They both looked at him when he came in.

"Hey, man. I was about to call you. Where have you been?" Leonard asked.

"I stopped in at Ian's to get a cup of coffee when I met the most fascinating woman. We started talking, and we lost track of time. She just dropped me off," Sheldon said.

"You met a woman?" Penny asked. She had tried to set Sheldon up with no fewer than three of her friends only to have them turned away for some reason or another. Even Bernadette, who ended up being a much better match for Howard was turned away for not living up to Sheldon's standards. It was usually that the women were not smart enough, but there were other problems too. No one had made it past a second date with Sheldon Cooper.

"Yes. She was leaving Ian's when she literally bumped into me. Her name is Dr. Amy Farrah Fowler, and she works at UCLA. I recognized her from a lecture I caught over there the last time I was guest speaking. She's a biologist, but I couldn't hold that against her," Sheldon told them. He was standing in the kitchen and had a big smile on his face. His friends had never seen him so giddy.

"Are you going to see her again?" Leonard asked.

"We're going to dinner later this week," Sheldon said.

"Well, good for you, man," Leonard said before turning the sound back on on the TV.

Sheldon went back to his room and got ready for bed. He was excited enough about the date that he wanted to text Amy as soon as he was alone. He knew that he shouldn't. Women didn't like an overeager man. It wasn't like Sheldon didn't like women. He was friendly and handsome, and sometimes it seemed like they just flocked to him, but it was rare that he felt such a connection with a woman.

He could tell that she was a little awkward and shy, but once he got her to open up about her work, it was like she was a whole different woman. She also dressed a little strangely, but her green eyes were hypnotic. Thinking about those eyes, Sheldon pulled out his phone and sent her a text message.

It was lovely meeting you tonight. I hope you had a safe drive home. -S

* * *

Amy had just gotten home when her phone dinged, alerting her to a new text message. She opened it and smiled. There was a part of her who thought Sheldon had given her a fake number even though he was the one who suggested exchanging information. Amy suddenly wished that she had a friend who would help her analyze this situation, but she decided that she might as well be as honest as she could because she would scare him off sooner or later.

I haven't had such a stimulating evening in a very long time. Thank you for the coffee, and I had a very pleasant drive home. -A

It was only a moment before her phone dinged again.

It was my pleasure. Have a good night. -S


End file.
